Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study

<b>Background:</b> This study evaluated the postoperative effects of hyaluronic acid (HA) on pain, swelling, and trismus following mandibular third molar surgery. <b>Material and Methods:</b> Thirty healthy patients with bilateral impacted mandibular third molars underwent tw...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Atalay Elver, Mehmet Gagari Caymaz, Melika Ghasemi Ghane
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-02-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/4/2042
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849719526569017344
author Atalay Elver
Mehmet Gagari Caymaz
Melika Ghasemi Ghane
author_facet Atalay Elver
Mehmet Gagari Caymaz
Melika Ghasemi Ghane
author_sort Atalay Elver
collection DOAJ
description <b>Background:</b> This study evaluated the postoperative effects of hyaluronic acid (HA) on pain, swelling, and trismus following mandibular third molar surgery. <b>Material and Methods:</b> Thirty healthy patients with bilateral impacted mandibular third molars underwent two surgeries at 21-day intervals. In a split-mouth design, one extraction socket was treated with 0.2 mL of high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid gel (Monovisc<sup>®</sup> [molecular weight ≈ 1.5–2.2 million Da]), while the contralateral socket received no additional treatment. Perioperative medications, including NSAIDs, were standardized for all patients. Data collection included postoperative pain, swelling (using Gabka and Matsumura’s method), analgesic consumption, and trismus (mouth opening) on designated days. Data were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests with Bonferroni correction (adjusted significance level: <i>p</i> > 0.0083). <b>Results:</b> The mean VAS pain scores on day 1 were 63.5 ± 22.3 in the HA group and 61.9 ± 12.5 in the control group, decreasing to 3.9 ± 7.6 and 3.3 ± 7.2, respectively, by day 7 (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). The maximum interincisal distance on day 7 was 45.9 ± 7.4 mm in the HA group and 43.5 ± 7.3 mm in the control group, showing a slight improvement (<i>p</i> = 0.002). Swelling, measured using the tragus–pogonion distance, was 164.6 ± 20.7 mm in the HA group and 166.3 ± 18.9 mm in the control group on day 7 (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). Analgesic consumption remained comparable across all postoperative days (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). No statistically significant differences were observed between the HA and the control groups at any evaluated time point. <b>Conclusions:</b> Hyaluronic acid application after mandibular third molar surgery demonstrated a slight improvement in trismus on day 7, but no significant long-term advantages in pain or swelling. While early postoperative improvements in trismus were observed, these findings require further validation. Additional studies are needed to explore HA’s potential clinical applications in oral surgery.
format Article
id doaj-art-c47f16faecde4b1db04b580e1aedefa5
institution DOAJ
issn 2076-3417
language English
publishDate 2025-02-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Applied Sciences
spelling doaj-art-c47f16faecde4b1db04b580e1aedefa52025-08-20T03:12:08ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172025-02-01154204210.3390/app15042042Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth StudyAtalay Elver0Mehmet Gagari Caymaz1Melika Ghasemi Ghane2Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University, Güzelyurt 99700, Mersin 10, TurkeyDepartment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University, Güzelyurt 99700, Mersin 10, TurkeyFaculty of Dentistry, Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University, Güzelyurt 99700, Mersin 10, Turkey<b>Background:</b> This study evaluated the postoperative effects of hyaluronic acid (HA) on pain, swelling, and trismus following mandibular third molar surgery. <b>Material and Methods:</b> Thirty healthy patients with bilateral impacted mandibular third molars underwent two surgeries at 21-day intervals. In a split-mouth design, one extraction socket was treated with 0.2 mL of high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid gel (Monovisc<sup>®</sup> [molecular weight ≈ 1.5–2.2 million Da]), while the contralateral socket received no additional treatment. Perioperative medications, including NSAIDs, were standardized for all patients. Data collection included postoperative pain, swelling (using Gabka and Matsumura’s method), analgesic consumption, and trismus (mouth opening) on designated days. Data were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests with Bonferroni correction (adjusted significance level: <i>p</i> > 0.0083). <b>Results:</b> The mean VAS pain scores on day 1 were 63.5 ± 22.3 in the HA group and 61.9 ± 12.5 in the control group, decreasing to 3.9 ± 7.6 and 3.3 ± 7.2, respectively, by day 7 (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). The maximum interincisal distance on day 7 was 45.9 ± 7.4 mm in the HA group and 43.5 ± 7.3 mm in the control group, showing a slight improvement (<i>p</i> = 0.002). Swelling, measured using the tragus–pogonion distance, was 164.6 ± 20.7 mm in the HA group and 166.3 ± 18.9 mm in the control group on day 7 (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). Analgesic consumption remained comparable across all postoperative days (<i>p</i> > 0.0083). No statistically significant differences were observed between the HA and the control groups at any evaluated time point. <b>Conclusions:</b> Hyaluronic acid application after mandibular third molar surgery demonstrated a slight improvement in trismus on day 7, but no significant long-term advantages in pain or swelling. While early postoperative improvements in trismus were observed, these findings require further validation. Additional studies are needed to explore HA’s potential clinical applications in oral surgery.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/4/2042mandibular third molar surgeryhyaluronic acidpostoperative painswellingtrismus
spellingShingle Atalay Elver
Mehmet Gagari Caymaz
Melika Ghasemi Ghane
Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
Applied Sciences
mandibular third molar surgery
hyaluronic acid
postoperative pain
swelling
trismus
title Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
title_full Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
title_fullStr Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
title_full_unstemmed Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
title_short Evaluating the Effects of Hyaluronic Acid on Postoperative Outcomes in Impacted Mandibular Third Molar Surgery: A Split-Mouth Study
title_sort evaluating the effects of hyaluronic acid on postoperative outcomes in impacted mandibular third molar surgery a split mouth study
topic mandibular third molar surgery
hyaluronic acid
postoperative pain
swelling
trismus
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/15/4/2042
work_keys_str_mv AT atalayelver evaluatingtheeffectsofhyaluronicacidonpostoperativeoutcomesinimpactedmandibularthirdmolarsurgeryasplitmouthstudy
AT mehmetgagaricaymaz evaluatingtheeffectsofhyaluronicacidonpostoperativeoutcomesinimpactedmandibularthirdmolarsurgeryasplitmouthstudy
AT melikaghasemighane evaluatingtheeffectsofhyaluronicacidonpostoperativeoutcomesinimpactedmandibularthirdmolarsurgeryasplitmouthstudy